Western Asiatic Bronze Stamp Seal with Formée Cross

£50.00

A small Western Asiatic bronze seal featuring an oval base, from which it rises to a short handle with a mid-ridge surmounted by a pierced loop. Engraved on the base is a formée cross displayed below a foliage motif. The seal would have been worn by its owner to have handy for legal or commercial transactions. The object is accompanied with a paper description signed by Professor W. G. Lambert, the famous Assyriologist.

Date: 500-200 BC
Provenance: Ex collection of a deceased gentlemen by descent to his family in London and Geneva, collection acquired 1970-1990.
Condition: Good condition

SOLD

SKU: XJ-19 Category: Tags: ,

The term Western Asiatic traditionally refers to ancient cultures of the Levant, Mesopotamia and Anatolia. This includes diverse historical periods and people such as the Sumerians, Akkadians, Babylonians, Assyrians, Hittites, Phoenicians.

In the ancient world, seals guaranteed the authenticity of marked ownership – as such, they were instrumental in legal transactions, and in the protection of goods against theft. Seals were often made of stone however there are also examples rendered in bone, ivory, faience, glass, metal, wood, and even sun-dried or baked clay. Seal amulets with stylised animals have been found throughout Mesopotamia in contexts dating to the late fourth millennium BC, although stamp seals and cylinder seals were the predominant types in the ancient Near East.

For more about stamp seals, see our relevant blog post: Making their Mark: A Concise Guide to Western Asiatic Stamp Seals

Weight 10.6 g
Dimensions L 1.8 x W 1.5 x H 2.1 cm
Culture

Metal

Region

Reference: For a similar shaped seal, The Metropolitan Museum, New York, item 1980.78.9

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